"Bella, please sit." Aro gestured to an empty seat at the table. Emmett skipped over, pulling out the chair with a large grin.
"Thank you Aro." I smiled and took my seat at the table.
Everyone else took their spots. Jasper and Emmett flanked my sides; Edward sat directly across from me. I tried to avoid his gaze completely, but I kept feeling his eyes on me. Jasper and Emmett didn't seem to notice, they were talking and joking with one another and the others at the table.
I was absolutely famished. Salmon. Chicken. Carrots. Stuffing. I had a bit of everything on my plate, devouring everything in sight.
"Hmph."
I stopped, fork midway to my mouth, and glared at the person sitting across from me. Edward sat slightly slouched back, his arms crossed, smirking sarcastically at me.
"Am I offending you?" I dropped the fork, making a loud clank.
The table fell silent, except for Emmett's laughter.
"Don't mind him Bella. He's just used to seeing girls with an appetite." Emmett slapped my shoulder playfully. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the two girls who sat next to Aro cower slightly in their seats.
I narrowed my eyes at Edward before picking my fork back up and stuffing the biggest piece of chicken I could manage into my mouth.
It was Aro's laugh that filled the room this time. He clapped as if he was thoroughly entertained by Edward and my exchange.
"Bella I do love your humor. I am so looking forward to our time together." Aro intertwined his fingers and rested his chin on his hands, leaning forward towards the middle of the table. "Francois!" He snapped his fingers towards the waiters standing in the background. "I do believe we're ready for dessert."
I took my time eating my desert, slowly consuming and enjoying each little morsel of the amazing Tiramisu. And I stared at Edward the entire time, my eyes filled with hate.
He sat calmly as he finished his plate, smiling sarcastically at me as if to mock my anger.
"So Bella are you ready to see your new living quarters?" Jasper turned towards me.
"New living quarters?"
"Well you surely don't want to stay in your old accommodations." Aro snickered playfully.
"We've already moved your things from your apartment on 5th. Everything is all set at the penthouse."
I let out a silent whoosh of relief. Thank Goodness I'd gotten a new apartment for the job. They could have easily traced my old apartment back to the police.
"You want to go see it?" Emmett grabbed my forearm and pulled me up from my chair.
"Yes please do Bella. I like my family to live well. Help yourself to anything in the penthouse; it's your home now. Please enjoy it," Aro said.
"Thank you Aro. I appreciate your hospitality."
Jasper drove, while Edward sat shotgun, with Emmett and I in the backseat. He just wouldn't shut up about how great the penthouse was. My eyes kept glancing up into the rearview mirror. I could just feel his eyes on me. And I was right. Edward's eyes darted down as soon as mine connected with his.
We pulled into the tallest building I'd ever seen. Jasper opened his door and threw the keys to the valet who was waiting patiently beside the car. My head tilted up, up, up searching for the top of the building. It was lost in the thick of clouds. My hand reached down aimlessly for the door handle. It swung open swiftly, held open for me by Edward. This was different. I eyed him suspiciously as I stepped out of the car.
"Thank you." I turned towards Edward.
"You're welcome." His eyes didn't connect with mine. It didn't sound like I was welcome. I shrugged it off and turned back towards the massive building in front of me.
"Right this way madam." Emmett did a bow and gestured towards the door.
We walked through some incredibly ornate revolving doors and stepped into the most elegant and lavish lobby I've ever seen.
"Wow."
"You haven't even seen the penthouse yet," Jasper laughed. His finger pointed up. "Top floor."
I smiled and sauntered over to the elevator, still taking my surroundings in. I'd never been in place as nice as this before, odds are I never would be again. Not on a cop's salary.
"Not that one." Emmett ushered me away from the elevator. "We get our own."
There, hiding among a mass of fake trees, was a small elevator door marked "PH." Jasper and Edward were already inside, holding the door open for us. My shoulder brushed briefly against Edward's outstretched arm, gracing us both with an electric shock.
"Sorry," I mumbled, rubbing my shoulder slightly.
He pressed the "PH" button, the only option available besides Ground. I couldn't complain about not having to deal with people getting on and off the elevator. After a full minute of rising we came to a soft stop and the doors opened. My eyes blinked a few times, questioning if what I was seeing was truly real and truly right in front of me.
We entered into a large living room/bar room/dining room/kitchen/just plain huge ass room. Everything that could be gold was gold, from the flecks in the marble floor to the crown moldings. No doubt it was all real. There was a large, plush white couch and chair in the center of the room seated in front of a huge see-through fireplace and flat screen plasma television.
Emmett leaned in close. "Now you can say wow."
"Wow," I stuttered. I don't know what I was expecting for the Mob's Home Sweet Home, but this was definitely exceeding my expectations.
"Your room is this way," Jasper smiled and gestured to the hallway on the right.
I followed him down the long passageway, taking in everything slowly. Edward and Emmett tagged along behind us. "Here."
We stopped at a beautiful white door adorned with gold trim and an intricate, vintage looking handle.
My breath caught in my throat as the door opened into the most beautiful bedroom I've ever seen. I couldn't believe this was all for me.
"Are you sure we're in the right room?" I walked into the room, spinning in circles to look at it all.
Emmett laughed.
I turned back towards the door. Edward was gone.
"He doesn't like me much does he?" I set my bag down on the floor.
"He's just a hard ass. He'll warm up to you eventually. Give him the chance." Jasper turned and walked away.
"So where do you sleep Emmett?"
"Why are you planning on sneaking in for a late night booty call?"
I snickered. With anyone else, this kind of shit would bother me. But it was just Emmett. I felt like I was starting to get to know him, and despite my best instincts I liked him. He was someone I could joke around with, like an older brother. A very perverted older brother.
"No. It's just nice to know where your friends are….or better yet know where people who are not friends are."
He shrugged. "Don't mind Edward. Just do your thing girl. The boss likes you. Jasper and I like you. Edward will too…eventually."
"Ha. Eventually." I didn't understand why I was so concerned about Edward's opinion of me. It didn't matter. I was going to be the one putting them in jail a few months from now. He really wouldn't like me then.
"Mine and Jasper's room are in the hallway on the other side of the living room."
"And Edward's….?"
"Eh." Emmett's eyes drifted out into the hallway. More precisely to the door right across the hall from mine.
"Fantastic." I slumped down on the bed.
"Sorry Bells. He's the new guy so he got the deserted side. Jasper and I have been friends for a long time."
My eyes seared into the closed door across the hall. This was going to be interesting.
"Bathroom's at the end of the hallway. We uh, didn't mess with any of that kind of stuff from your place. It's all in the black bag there." He pointed to a corner of the room, which I now saw had a few boxes, a trunk, and a small bag. Emmett's eyes raked over the bag looking absolutely terrified.
"What is it about girls and their beauty products that scare you guys so much?"
"As long as it makes you beautiful, I don't want to know anything about waxing, plucking, shaving, exfoliating, or…other girl issues. I'm a guy. We don't do girl issues. And by the way," he pointed a finger at me, "If I see the word tampons on our grocery list I will flip out, so get your own."
I laughed. "So you don't have people that do all the shopping for you?"
He sat down on the edge of the bed. "Not really. I mean Aro lets us stay here and he gives us any and all the money we need to live here, but we're pretty much on our own. Unless he needs us for a job or something." He shrugged his shoulders. "Alright." He slapped my knee. "I'll let you unpack. See you tomorrow." He smiled and left the room.
I started unpacking all my things putting my clothes in the dresser or in the oversized walk in closet. I was thankful for once that I didn't have that much stuff. Once I had unpacked everything except for my scary bag with girl things, I picked it up and walked tentatively to the bathroom.
"Oh. My. God." I said as I flipped on the light switch. The gold theme continued into the bathroom, if you could even call it that. It was more like a spa, like a sanctuary. There was a large sink to one side. What looked like a 5-person shower sat in the corner. There were even large billowing swatches of fabric hanging down in all four corners of the hot tub like bathtub. Unlit candles graced the surrounding space and the stairs that led up to the basin.
I strolled over to the vanity and started to put my things in the cabinet. I searched the countertop for a place to keep my toothbrush. I sighed when I saw a toothbrush holder, one spot taken by a bright blue toothbrush. I could scrub the toilet with it, or use it on the first dog I could find. Instead I decided to do something that I hoped would be even more irritating to him. I set my red toothbrush in the spot right next to his with a smile. As I turned to leave, my eyes couldn't avoid the allure of the bathtub.
I leaned forward on my toes and glanced down the hallway. Edward's door was still closed. Maybe he'd already gone to sleep. I tiptoed back down to my room and grabbed a towel and my IPod before slipping back into the bathroom. I undressed and wrapped the towel around me while the warm water filled the basin. I didn't even have a bathtub in my old apartment. This was going to be like heaven. I smiled to myself as I lit the candles with the matches I'd found underneath the sink.
The water felt like ecstasy as I dipped my foot in. I let the towel fall to the floor as I emerged myself. The room was beginning to fill with a think steam. I leaned my head back against the soft pillow on the side of the tub and put my headphones in. My mind began to wander as I soaked in the water.
I suddenly felt like I was doing something wrong. Here I was in this luxurious place and I was actually enjoying it. I felt like I was somehow betraying Jake. No Bella. You're doing your job. What would they think if you sulked around all the time? You have every right to use the facilities provided to you. I could just imagine Jake laughing at me for being so ridiculous, arguing with myself on whether I had the right to take a bath or not. "Relax Bella, it's just a bath," he'd say.
I finally started to let go and began humming along to the songs playing loudly in my ears. My humming turned to mumbling which turned into full on singing. With my eyes closed, it was like I was in my own little world. It wasn't just me in a bathtub singing to my favorite Michael Jackson song. I was back at home, in my own apartment dancing around and singing with Jake. "Dirty Diana, oh!" I smiled at the memory.
A soft sound, something definitely not from my headphones startled me. I whipped them off and turned slightly towards the vanity. Edward stood at the sink brushing his teeth.
"Excuse me?!" I frantically pulled the towel up to cover any of me that wasn't hidden in the bathwater. "What the hell are you doing?"
His eyes briefly glanced my way in the mirror, showing no sign of shock that he was not alone in the bathroom.
He spit into the sink and turned on the water. "I'm brushing my teeth genius." He brushed around a couple more times, spit again, and turned the water off, placing his toothbrush back in the holder.
"Did you ever think to knock?"
He shrugged. "No."
"Well…uh…but…" I was shocked at his answer. It was so…honest. I guess that was one good thing I was learning about Edward. He didn't bullshit you. He always gave you a straight answer, even if it was totally out of left field and not what you were expecting at all.
He turned and started out the door.
"Goodnight," he peeked his head back in a smiled a crooked smile. "Dirty Diana."
A/N: "Dirty Diana" is the Michael Jackson song that Bella was singing, which Edward heard. So he's teasing her.
Reviews are better than peeping Edwards. : )